PALAEONTOLOGY[online]

Tag: Alexander R. Schmidt

Alexander is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geobiology at the University of Göttingen, Germany. He received his PhD from the University of Jena in Germany, and worked as a postdoc at the Museum of Natural History in Berlin. His primary interest is in the evolution of Mesozoic and Cenozoic land plants and fungi. He is the author or co-author of about 80 peer-reviewed articles in palaeontology, botany and mycology, most of which are related to fossils found in worldwide amber deposits, from the Triassic to the Miocene.

Alexander enjoys prospecting for amber and modern resin in sometimes remote places such as New Caledonia and New Zealand, but most fossils he works with are already part of museums’ collections or are generously provided by amateur collectors.

Contact Details:

Prof. Dr. Alexander Schmidt, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Department of Geobiology, Göttingen, Germany.

alexander.schmidt@geo.uni-goettingen.de

by Leyla J. Seyfullah*1 and Alexander R. Schmidt1 Introduction: Some of the most extraordinary fossils ever discovered, from insects to plants and feathers, are preserved in amber. Amber is the term for various solidified forms of plant resin that occur in the rock record. It can be found in many different colours, shapes and sizes (Fig. 1). Until the past decade, it was thought to be very rare, but new discoveries have shown that it is more abundant in terms of both geographical coverage and presence through time than was previously thought. Although many amber deposits do not contain fossils, some do. Fossils (also known as inclusions) in amber often have exquisite, three-dimensional preservation, retaining fine surface and structural details, and are frequently preserved at lea...